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Lionel Messi: Fact file of the ex-Argentine skipper

Argentina and Barcelona star Lionel Messi announced his retirement from the national team after a fourth final loss in his career. In the latest loss, he missed a penalty against Chile in the Copa America finals, Argentina’s second successive loss to the Chileans.

“It’s been four finals, I tried. It was the thing I wanted the most, but I couldn’t get it, so I think it’s over,” Messi told reporters after the game. He was also on the losing side at the 2014 World Cup in Brazil, losing out to eventual winners Germany.

‘‘When the pressure rises, Messi is first to answer the call,’‘ the now ex-Argentine international tweeted on June 18, the following day in a GIF he said Argentina was two matches away from glory and he would settle for nothing less.

It’s been four finals, I tried. It was the thing I wanted the most, but I couldn’t get it, so I think it’s over.

Days later, he decided to quit international football, we present a fact file of Lionel Messi, arguably one of the greatest footballers of this era, with focus on his personal, national and glittering club career with Spanish giants Barcelona.